Minna Sunikka-Blank
Biographic Data
| ID | 5028673 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Minna Sunikka-Blank |
| GIVEN NAMES | Minna |
| FAMILY NAME | Sunikka-Blank |
| SIGNATURE | SUNIKKA-BLANK M |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Cambridge |
| VERIFIED | No |
| TOTAL WORKS | 14 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 22 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 14 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2012 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 3 |
Now we feel completely lazy’ social and cultural dimensions of solar electrification among tribal women in rural India
This study examines the social impact of a community solar project implemented in the tribal area of Khuded, rural India, employing a mixed-methods approach over a five-year period (2019–2024). Data collection included pre- and post-build surveys of 80 households, participatory filmmaking and interviews, with a particular focus on women in the community. The findings show the time benefits and social value created for women due to the reduction o…
Cultural Dimensions of Energy Transitions and Clean Cooking in Informal Settlements
This study aims to understand the environmental aspects of energy transitions and clean cooking in informal settlements by focusing on domestic practices, gender roles, and employment status in Mukuru, Nairobi. Adopting a mixed-method approach, household surveys and focus group discussions (FGDs), the research asks: What drives the adoption of clean cooking in informal settlements? How are economic conditions and cultural norms intertwined in wom…
‘Story of My Village’
Our work is a collection of artefacts: drawings, storyboards, films, music and poems created by a tribal community in rural India during interactive workshops which used various participatory arts-based methods to tell stories about the experiences related to a new solar powered community building. Energy use is deeply connected with human cultures, practices, norms and values. This article challenges assumptions about linear progress between ene…
Technology, High-Rise, and Modern Homes
This study employs social practice theory to examine how vertical urbanization in China accelerates domestic energy demand through the interplay of technology and socio-cultural dynamics. Focusing on a densified neighbourhood in Jinan, Shandong Province, mixed-method analyses reveal how infrastructural elements like lifts and apartment layouts prefigure indoor-oriented lifestyles, reducing social interaction and increasing reliance on appliances.…
Where’s nature
The study of Emirati women's engagement with urban landscapes has started to emerge over the last two decades, mostly within ethnographic and historic accounts that emphasise 'culture', and are centred on how women navigate cultural values of female propriety within a context that is rapidly becoming urbanized and globalized. Based on semi-structured interviews with Emirati women that examine perceptions of 'nature' in a highly urbanized context,…
From informal to formal
Provision of affordable housing and energy access is an urgent challenge in India and South Africa. This study adopts a participatory filmmaking approach to understand women’s agency in low-income domestic housing in Mumbai and Cape Town. Through their films, the women shared insights of how the transitional housing environment has impacted their everyday routines and how they are utilising the access to energy. By employing creative, participato…
I’m always home’
The impact of different places on women’s practices has not been much explored in the context of informal settlements in Iran, where they face many restrictions due to socio-cultural norms. Using a qualitative approach, this paper investigates how different geographies of place affect women’s practices for social interaction and physical activity. This research is based on primary data collection through interviews and transect walks in Moradab H…
Young urban households in Shanghai, China
Discomfort and distress in slum rehabilitation
Slum rehabilitation policies in India is observed to have a rebound effect on the occupants, where rehabilitated occupants move back to the horizontal slums. In this study, we investigate the cause behind this rebound phenomenon based on a theory of homeostasis, where the loss of homeostasis refers to occupants' heightened discomfort and distress in their built environment. A novel methodological framework was developed to investigate it based on…
Sentiment analysis as tool for gender mainstreaming in slum rehabilitation housing management in Mumbai, India
Economic Inequality and Household Energy Consumption in High-income Countries
A Critical Appraisal of Germany's Thermal Retrofit Policy
Critical Appraisal of Germany's Thermal Retrofit Policy
Introducing the prebound effect
German regulations for the thermal renovation of existing homes demand high thermal standards, which the government claims are technically and economically feasible. This paper examines existing data on 3400 German homes; their calculated energy performance ratings (EPR) are then plotted against the actual measured consumption. The results indicate that occupants consume, on average, 30% less heating energy than the calculated rating. This phenom…
Discomfort and distress in slum rehabilitation
Slum rehabilitation policies in India is observed to have a rebound effect on the occupants, where rehabilitated occupants move back to the horizontal slums. In this study, we investigate the cause behind this rebound phenomenon based on a theory of homeostasis, where the loss of homeostasis refers to occupants' heightened discomfort and distress in their built environment. A novel methodological framework was developed to investigate it based on…
I’m always home’
The impact of different places on women’s practices has not been much explored in the context of informal settlements in Iran, where they face many restrictions due to socio-cultural norms. Using a qualitative approach, this paper investigates how different geographies of place affect women’s practices for social interaction and physical activity. This research is based on primary data collection through interviews and transect walks in Moradab H…
Sentiment analysis as tool for gender mainstreaming in slum rehabilitation housing management in Mumbai, India
From informal to formal
Provision of affordable housing and energy access is an urgent challenge in India and South Africa. This study adopts a participatory filmmaking approach to understand women’s agency in low-income domestic housing in Mumbai and Cape Town. Through their films, the women shared insights of how the transitional housing environment has impacted their everyday routines and how they are utilising the access to energy. By employing creative, participato…
Introducing the prebound effect
German regulations for the thermal renovation of existing homes demand high thermal standards, which the government claims are technically and economically feasible. This paper examines existing data on 3400 German homes; their calculated energy performance ratings (EPR) are then plotted against the actual measured consumption. The results indicate that occupants consume, on average, 30% less heating energy than the calculated rating. This phenom…
A Critical Appraisal of Germany's Thermal Retrofit Policy
Critical Appraisal of Germany's Thermal Retrofit Policy
Economic Inequality and Household Energy Consumption in High-income Countries
Discomfort and distress in slum rehabilitation
Slum rehabilitation policies in India is observed to have a rebound effect on the occupants, where rehabilitated occupants move back to the horizontal slums. In this study, we investigate the cause behind this rebound phenomenon based on a theory of homeostasis, where the loss of homeostasis refers to occupants' heightened discomfort and distress in their built environment. A novel methodological framework was developed to investigate it based on…
Sentiment analysis as tool for gender mainstreaming in slum rehabilitation housing management in Mumbai, India
Young urban households in Shanghai, China
I’m always home’
The impact of different places on women’s practices has not been much explored in the context of informal settlements in Iran, where they face many restrictions due to socio-cultural norms. Using a qualitative approach, this paper investigates how different geographies of place affect women’s practices for social interaction and physical activity. This research is based on primary data collection through interviews and transect walks in Moradab H…
From informal to formal
Provision of affordable housing and energy access is an urgent challenge in India and South Africa. This study adopts a participatory filmmaking approach to understand women’s agency in low-income domestic housing in Mumbai and Cape Town. Through their films, the women shared insights of how the transitional housing environment has impacted their everyday routines and how they are utilising the access to energy. By employing creative, participato…
‘Story of My Village’
Our work is a collection of artefacts: drawings, storyboards, films, music and poems created by a tribal community in rural India during interactive workshops which used various participatory arts-based methods to tell stories about the experiences related to a new solar powered community building. Energy use is deeply connected with human cultures, practices, norms and values. This article challenges assumptions about linear progress between ene…
Technology, High-Rise, and Modern Homes
This study employs social practice theory to examine how vertical urbanization in China accelerates domestic energy demand through the interplay of technology and socio-cultural dynamics. Focusing on a densified neighbourhood in Jinan, Shandong Province, mixed-method analyses reveal how infrastructural elements like lifts and apartment layouts prefigure indoor-oriented lifestyles, reducing social interaction and increasing reliance on appliances.…
Where’s nature
The study of Emirati women's engagement with urban landscapes has started to emerge over the last two decades, mostly within ethnographic and historic accounts that emphasise 'culture', and are centred on how women navigate cultural values of female propriety within a context that is rapidly becoming urbanized and globalized. Based on semi-structured interviews with Emirati women that examine perceptions of 'nature' in a highly urbanized context,…
Now we feel completely lazy’ social and cultural dimensions of solar electrification among tribal women in rural India
This study examines the social impact of a community solar project implemented in the tribal area of Khuded, rural India, employing a mixed-methods approach over a five-year period (2019–2024). Data collection included pre- and post-build surveys of 80 households, participatory filmmaking and interviews, with a particular focus on women in the community. The findings show the time benefits and social value created for women due to the reduction o…
Cultural Dimensions of Energy Transitions and Clean Cooking in Informal Settlements
This study aims to understand the environmental aspects of energy transitions and clean cooking in informal settlements by focusing on domestic practices, gender roles, and employment status in Mukuru, Nairobi. Adopting a mixed-method approach, household surveys and focus group discussions (FGDs), the research asks: What drives the adoption of clean cooking in informal settlements? How are economic conditions and cultural norms intertwined in wom…
Economics (7 works) · Sociology (6 works) · Economic growth (5 works) · Political science (5 works) · Energy and Environment Impacts (4 works) · Engineering (4 works) · Geography (4 works) · Business (3 works) · Gender Studies (3 works) · Gender Studies (3 works)